Inspirationators: What music means to me

As a musician, people expect me to know it all, be it all, have heard it all, and be able to identify it all. The truth is, I'm a listen-and-know-by-ear kinda girl. I've heard old rock songs, but I don't know them by heart and it's a rare thing indeed if I remember the band at all.

My husband tries to quiz me on this. "I'll give you a million dollars if you can name this band," he says, knowing I won't know. The sad thing is, it's usually someone easy like Red Hot Chili Peppers or the Beastie Boys. This is my memory, the way my mind works, and I've learned to accept it and overlook people's expectations.

Now ask me about Chopin and I can tell you about all the different types of pieces he wrote, who he fell in love with and why, how old he was when he died, etc. But play a 70-90's rock song and ask me who sang it and this is me--->

That being said, I can't live, can't breathe, can't go one DAY without music. It is in my blood to be affected by it.

If a song gives me goosebumps, I am a goner. I melt, I become entranced, I feel transported into a new world.

If a song has an awesome beat, I can't stand still. I'll make an absolute dork of myself and I couldn't care less. I have to move.

Music also sets my mood while writing. I do have my favorite songs, but they are mood setters. I realize this might be unusual. Most people who use music while writing, know their songs, know their favorite bands. As I said, I've accepted that I am a weird girl.

Even as I write this post, I had to go through my playlists to pick out my favorite songs. I can tell you where they are on the list, but not who sings them, LOL.

For Bitter Angel--if you know anything about this wild story--my mood setters were well-written gems like: Far East Movement's G6 and Wiz Khalifa's Black and Yellow. 

Timeless, right? HA! But they totally set the mood for the CUH-RAZY things that went down in that book, and for the heart-thumpin' base I needed to write the clubbing scenes. 

For other parts of the book, I used music from the Black Hawk Down soundtrack, because I could feel the intensity and emotion but there were no words to distract me from the action going down. 

For my next book, the mood is completely different. I need something softer, sadder, slower to set my mood. I'll leave you with this absolutely perfect musical teaser to give you a hint about what this story might be about. It's not a thriller, it is a romance, it is New Adult, and it will--hopefully--break your heart into pieces and put it back together again, of course ;) 

What are your musical inspirationators? Do you have a favorite band? Does a particular song give you such a strong feeling, you become entranced just by listening? 

Share with me!

HOLY GUACAMOLE, It's FRIDAY???

Where the frick frack do my weeks go? I have no stinkin' idea. This is going to be the laziest post ever, but I wanted to say that I'm gearing up for something fun starting next week. I'm going to do a series of-- *drum roll please*--

INSPIRATIONATORS 

Say WHA??? 

For the next two weeks or so, I'm going to post some things that have inspired me with writing and life. I'm hoping to make these super duper fun posts. I have been rather dry about the whole blogging thing. I've actually been having a lot of fun reaching out to other blogs, but have been rather lazy (possibly because all my creativity is going into this next novel) about my own posts. 

I'm trying to remedy that!   

So be on the lookout next week, because Megan is comin' atcha LIVE. 

(FYI I am on a veggie juice high this week, so please disregard the hyper/ridiculous/over-enthusiastic silliness of this post.)

   

I'm a Juice Girl

I need juice to survive. This is not to be mistaken with orange juice, meh. Or veggie juice, good for me but blech! But I do love me some creative juices.

I count myself a lucky girl. I’d say about ninety percent of the time I sit down to write the juices are there, just waiting to be tapped so they can flow, creating a frothy swirl through my brain before they nosedive into my keyboard tapping fingers.

Necessity, these juices.

But, I admit shamefully, there are many times I do not sit down at my computer because of the simple fear these juices are running low, moving syrupy slow, or are just plain tapped out. It’s scary for me. I don’t know why. I get this pum-puhpum in my heart, even when I’ve mapped out exactly what I’m going to write on a given night. And for some stupid reason, instead of heading to my office to do exactly what I want to do, I veer off course, settle onto my bed and spend an evening with my Kindle, soaking in someone else’s creativity, enjoying the flavor of someone else’s juices, and letting my own grow stale.

Why do I do this? Because it’s easy. I don’t have to lean on my sometimes unpredictable juices. But, truthfully, it’s silly. And a time waster. Not that reading is EVER a time waster, it’s not. And often, when the juices are low, reading can create a fresh juice swell, which I love.

But now, having pulled back the curtain on my anonymity, and releasing my Newborn Author Self into the world, I no longer have the luxury of stupid fears. I must rely on my juices to grow arms when I can’t reach things, be my weapon in battle, and fight for me when I can’t fight for myself.

What do my juices ask for in return? That I show up. Seems very little give for what I take. I know my liquid stash won’t always be full to the brim. It won’t always have the speed of an Olympic runner or the perfect flavor I’m after, but I trust it. I trust the juices.

And so should you.

Check out these links HERE and HERE for some ideas on how to get that creative juice ocean moving for you :)

What inspires you?

Since this blog is relatively new, I am biting my lips and hem-hawing on what I really want to do with it. I follow a lot of book blogs, but I am a writer, so while I love reviewing books, and my beloved indie movies, my main focus is going to be on writing, dreams, inspiration, etc...

I know we all get our inspiration from anywhere and everywhere. I do. I've heard a lot of people get inspired in the shower. I totally do that. I think it's because we actually have a moment where we're forced to be stationary, and our brains begin to wander.

The novel I'm working on for NaNo is the antithesis of my last book. Where my last story was mostly action and took place over the course of two days, this next project is a love story brought about by tragedy and spans the course of over a year. It's a much softer, quieter story, and requires me to be in a different state of mind.

To get me into this state of mind, every time I sit down to write, I read an excerpt from Mark Nepo's The Book of Awakening.

This book is one of the most beautiful things I have ever read. It's not a novel. It's a collection of insightful passages on just about everything. I truly can't even fathom how this man came up with this many. Each and every passage is deep and wonderful. Most of them bring me to tears. They manage to pluck those heartstrings way in the back that no one else can reach.

I found this book when my husband and I were on vacation, perusing the nearest Barnes and Noble. I picked it up, started reading, and the room faded away. I was alone, and his words spun around me, clutching, prodding, piercing. When I came back to myself, I looked at my husband, wide-eyed, and said, "I'm getting this."

Excerpt: 

Before we blink, we know each other.

We speak before we speak, with eyes and lips, in how we tip our heads, in how we lean like trees tired of waiting for the sun... We pretend we are strangers and deny what we learn before words.

We are all made up of yearning and light... This is enough to begin... That we want to be held and left alone, again and again; held and left alone until the dance of it is how we survive and grow, like spring into winter into spring again.

At the end of each passage is a small list of things to think on or mental exercises to get us to that peaceful place. I find I don't usually need the list. The words are enough to get me there.

Do you have a book or passage that helps put you where you need to be before you write? 
Share with me! 

TODAY!

Today is THE day
Don't delay
Shout HOOray
For toDAY,
'Cause toDAY
Is THE day
I must say
I can't sway,
I can't stray,
I can't eat a partfait,
For toDAY is the day,
Yes, today is THE day!





Okay, so I'm no Dr. Seuss, but I couldn't help but put together a little NaNo Jingle. My project this year is something I've been working on for too long. Have written it too too many times. While I'm anxious to dive back into these character's world, I am also anxious to get this story off my plate so I can burrow into my other way super-hip and awesome, fun, cool stories. Like totally.

So... Dun-dun-dun-DUN! 10, 9, 8... Cue opening shot - AND I'M OFF! To a faraway land called my early twenties. Ah, yes, I remember what that was like when my - oh, right. Supposed to be writing.

Stop back tomorrow - I'll be posting a really fun review for Steph Campbell's and Liz Reinhardt's  Lengths!

Share with me! What are your projects this year?